THE ringgit continued to close lower against the US dollar on bullish demand for the greenback amid expectations that the US Federal Reserve (Fed) would keep its interest rate at the current level, an analyst said.

At 6pm, the local note slid to 4.6825/6850 against the greenback from yesterday’s close of 4.6785/6835.

Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd chief economist and social finance head Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said markets were also mulling whether Fed would change its stance in light of the lower core US Consumer Price Index data.

“Sentiments may be influenced by the Japanese yen, which continued to decline against the US dollar despite the hawkish statement by the Bank of Japan’s governor last weekend,” he said.

At the close, the ringgit was traded lower against a basket of major currencies.

It weakened against the Japanese yen to 3.1769/1789 from 3.1742/1778 at yesterday’s close, fell versus the British pound to 5.8405/8436 from 5.8308/8370 yesterday and was lower against the euro at 5.0234/0261 from 5.0200/0254.

The local note also traded mostly lower against other Asian currencies.

It declined vis-à-vis the Singapore dollar to 3.4402/4423 from 3.4358/4400 at yesterday’s close and edged down against the Indonesian rupiah to 304.9/305.2 from 304.3/304.8.

The ringgit was almost flat against the Philippine peso at 8.25/8.26 versus 8.24/8.26 yesterday, but traded better against the Thai baht at 13.0792/0902 from 13.0809/1003. – Bernama, September 14, 2023.